Call to implement Fata reforms

LAHORE

Politicians, academicians and journalists at a roundtable conference on Thursday urged the government to implement Fata reforms without any further delay, which they thought were necessary to keep the region intact with the whole country and redress their deprivation. 

According to a press release, the roundtable conference “Implementation of Fata Reforms: Way Forward (View from Punjab) was organised by the Department of Media and Communication at University of Management and Technology (UMT). Chaired by Dr Muhammad Aslam, the rector UMT, the conference was addressed by Punjab Minister Finance Ms Aisha Ghaus Pasha, spokesman government of Punjab Malik Ahmad, MNA (PTI) Ms Munazza Hassan, MPA (PML-Q) Ms Khadija Farooqi, MPA (PTI) Ms Sadia Sohail and others.

The speakers said, Fata belonged to the whole of Pakistan and it was the responsibility of the federation and all the provinces to view it as an integral part of the country and put their due share in the region’s development and for its peace and prosperity.

They said the federal government must not fall prey to the tactics of the so-called low-mandated parties that were not original representatives of the people of Fata as it will only add frustration and deprivation to the expectations of people of the marginalised Fata over the years.

Majority of the speakers were of the view that this was the right time and a historic opportunity for mainstreaming the region, which should be seized without further delay; while the procedural issues for the integration could be addressed in due course of time.

The five years transition period for an incremental approach for Fata’s merger into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) was too long, they felt, stating there were internal and external forces that could potentially sabotage the present willingness and near consensus of the people of Fata for the much needed change and, as a consequence, the process itself if it was not done immediately.

There have been up to one and a half dozen such efforts to reform Fata in the past but all in vain. The speakers cautioned that if things went wrong this time too, this would not be the people of Fata only but the entire country to bear the brunt of consequences.

The participants underscored the need that the people of KPK should be sensitised to prepare for this major development too. 

The speakers argued how the provincial contributions in NFC award could help the troubled region out of the current crises and lead it towards an integrated, tolerant and democratic society.

The speakers emphasised that rehabilitation with a special focus on education and health sector could reduce deprivation and inferiority-complexity found among the people of Fata. They said the government without wasting further time should implement the reforms and think how the developed and reformed Fata could lead to greater national consolidation.